New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. announces the addition of Nancy Coons to its Apparel division. In the newly created role of General Manager, Apparel, Coons will be charged with providing strategic direction, vision, and leadership in all aspects of New Balance’s global apparel business. She will be directly responsible for the design, development, product planning, and marketing aspects of the business and will also guide cross-functional efforts.

Coons brings more than 15 years of experience in the apparel and accessory industry. She comes to New Balance from the California based Oakley, Inc. where she spent 5 years managing the apparel business. Prior to that, Coons held a variety of positions including Apparel Divisional Merchandise Manager at Nike, Inc. and Specialty Merchandise Division Manager at Walt Disney Attractions, Inc.

“Nancy will bring strength and industry experience to our aggressive global apparel business,” says Paul Heffernan, Executive Vice President of Global Marketing, Design & Development at New Balance. “Her extensive teamwork and leadership skills will enable New Balance to continue to achieve our goals.”

Coons holds a BA from The Ohio State University and she currently resides in North Andover, MA with her family.